cannot keep your poor acquaintance from getting all your money away from you, except by keeping it a secret that you haye got any? Far from it. Your acquaintance are poor, but you are rich. Yes; and they continue poor, and you continue rich; and there is no concealment in the matter. They know of your riches, and you know of their poverty. Still they continue poor. Have the goodness, then, not to interrupt us again; and hear what we have further to say about the Jews. The Jews are a very kind people among themselves. And it will be a sad thing if any individual of that nation, on becoming a convert, should have to complain, as we fear it has sometimes happened, that he has met with far less kindness among Christians, than he formerly experienced amongst his own people; and far less than he might, at any time, again experience, if he chose to go back to them. If such a man continues faithful, it is a great testimony to the power of the Gospel; but no very favourable one to its professors. That great gulf, which is fixed, amongst us, between the rich and the poor, and which so dreadfully determines, what, in the sight of God, must be the true character of Gentile society, is by no means so fixed, or so wide, amongst the Jews. Connected with many synagogues, there is a kind of common room, called the Col Stub*. Into this apartment, Jews, of every rank and condition, can go at any time. There, the rich and the poor meet together; and thus the children of Israel are a witness to the truth of God's word, as spoken by Solomon, far more than Christians, and pious Christians too, in some places of worship.—If a Jew, travelling through a place where there is a synagogue, attends it on the Sabbath, immediately after service he is accosted by the members of the congregation. Where he comes from is generally the first question; a very little conversation is sufficient to ascertain his nationality; and it often becomes a matter of amicable competition, especially if he is a poor man, who shall take him home. Poor people often walk into Christian places of worship, and walk out again, no one noticing or regarding them. Is it not one of the things, which stand over for the day of judgment? Will it not be one of the tremendous solemnities of that day, that God will avenge the poor? But among the Jews this is not so. Poor travellers, among them, generally find hospitality, and help for their journey. And this is the only way of explaining the manner, in which the poorest Jews

There are

*Col is the Hebrew, all: Stub is the German stube, a room. many phrases, in modern Jewish, which are partly of Hebrew, partly of German origin; for example, Yom tov kleider, holiday clothes.

will contrive to pass from place to place, and from country to country, till they have seen a great part of the world; and so to fulfil the righteous sentence, which condemns them to wander, for having shed their Brother's blood.

When the Jews give among themselves, too, they often give liberally. A poor scholar, whose dress a brother Jew would hardly purchase, or even accept if it were given to him, goes, on his arrival in England, to the chief Rabbi, lays his case before him, and receives a present of ten pounds. We should give him a penny,-perhaps half-a-crown, at the utmost. We once heard some accounts of a lying-in charity, which the London Jews have established among themselves; and compared the allowances, by the assistance of a friend, with those of a similar charity amongst Christians. What was the result? That the Christian allowances did not much surpass the Jewish? No. That the two were equal? No. The Jewish allowances, taking every thing into the account, were about DOUBLE the Christian. We shall be glad if any Gentile is led, by reading this, to double his exertions, to double his contributions, to double his prayers, for the house of Israel.-Nor do the Jews, so entirely, confine their liberality among themselves. Their contributions to one of the London hospitals, we understand, are very considerable. It is a hospital indeed, into which sick Jews are often received; but still those connected with the establishment speak of the sums paid as liberal. Besides, what are we, but a parcel of Goyim? What right have we to expect any thing from Israel? And, after all, from whom have we received more? We owe to them those Scriptures, that Saviour, of whose power and consolations we would, in return, gladly make them partakers, in all the fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ.

There are other circumstances, however, which ought to be known by us, before we can rightly understand the Jewish character, with respect to money. Wealth is regarded by the children of Israel as a spiritual blessing. We will not say, that in this they take the most evangelical and spiritual view of the Mosaic promises. But we will say, that it is the natural view for unconverted persons to adopt. Hence the getting of wealth, in the mind of a Jew, is much connected with his religious feelings. A man (says a commentator, speaking of the Sabbath,) became very rich. How happened this? By his way of honouring the Sabbath. He was a butcher. It is the duty of every true Jew to have as good a dinner, on the Sabbath, as he can and, to help the observance of this duty, the butcher always killed his best beasts for that day. Great riches were his reward.

Such being the sort of feelings, with which many Jewish minds are thoroughly imbued, we ought not to be too savage against them, if this sometimes discovers itself.-The view is not very defensible, perhaps; but we ought at any rate to understand it. A worthy friend of ours, who is by no means deficient either in discernment of character, or in Christian kindness, was one day visited by a Jew, professing himself a convert, who had experienced some improvement in his circumstances. When the Jew was poor, he came poorly clad. When he became rich, he made his appearance in silk stockings and pumps. The sight of these superfluities very much lowered his religion, in our friend's estimation. Now, had the case been that of a Gentile professor, we ourselves might have been prejudiced. But, in the case of a Jew, we could have whispered in our friend's ear; "Be not discouraged. The man may yet be honest." It is very possible that a Jew, whose conscience is touched and awakened, may be seeking for religious truth and peace with all sincerity, and even, to a certain degree, have found what he seeks; and yet retain his old feelings, upon the subject of riches as a religious blessing; and be earnestly occupied in the getting of money, without seeing any great harm in so doing. What would the Christian pastor say, if we were to tell him to cease to hope, respecting every money-getting member of his flock?

But besides this great matter of money, we could mention other points, in which we mistake the Jewish character. Their manners, we think, are light. But there is a difference between their national character and ours, for which difference allowance should be made. Perhaps few civilized nations make so little allowance for foreigners, as the English; and this shews itself, in our way of judging respecting the Jews. We decide against them; but we decide too soon. We discover, for instance, or think we discover, in the manners of a Jewish convert, much emptiness and self-conceit. But here there is a point to be considered. The man appears vain, indeed. But is he not much altered from what he was? Compare him with the unconverted, and you will at once see the difference. You call him light and self-confident. But what was he, before he came to the right understanding of his Torah, and returned to his Master's service. Again: The lightness, it may be, is, after all, only superficial. Try him; talk with him; see more of him. Cut down upon him through the froth, and you will perhaps come to something solid. There are many men amongst ourselves, who are coxcombs as to their superficies. The fault is in their tailors-their sisters-the first society they have

fallen into, on entering into the world. But these same men, when you come to know more of them, we speak of believers inclusively, are often by far the most valuable characters. It is much better, of the two, that a man should have something that a little offends our nicety, in his exterior, and be solid within; than that he should maintain a solemn, dignified bearing, with nothing beneath to support it. Talk of having the air of a coxcomb? Why, really, when we look around, we hardly know where we could lay our hands upon six men of talents, who have it not. Take away all the eminently pious men, who have any thing of the air of a coxcomb:-the Church could not stand the loss. But no. We bear with them. We love them. We venerate them. We see something in their very peculiarities, which is dear to our hearts. And it is right we should. This is the true, genuine, Christian feeling, as opposed to that which is sour and godless. But then we ought to exercise the same feeling towards the Jews. It was to actual observation, in the case of a Jew, that we were ourselves led to this feeling, so far at least as the Jews are concerned. We happened to see much of a Jewish convert, whom, with every disposition to hope well of him as to the main point, we really took for the most shal low, empty, superficial, conceited sort of a gentleman, that we had ever had the pleasure of being acquainted with. But mark: Another Jew makes his appearance, professing a desire for Christian instruction. And now also our volatile friend appears, but volatile no longer. With solemnity, earnestness, gentleness, and much affection, he discourses with the professed inquirer; in a few minutes of quiet conversation comes at his real motive, which is, to be set up as a pedlar; preaches to him the Gospel; invites him to repeat his visit; and kindly dismisses him,-seen through, but not offended, or even conscious. The fact is, then, we must not judge of Jewish converts by their first appearance. The true test we will now make known to our readers;-love to their brethren; love both to their converted and to their unconverted brethren. This you will find present, in every sincere convert of Israel. This you will find wanting, in every pretender. How eminently it shone forth in Wolff, let those who saw him testify. Yes. A convert may have many things in him, contrary to our notions and feelings. He may have very much the look of a foreigner. He may pay very little attention to external embellishment. He may wear a great deal more hair upon his head, than we do. He may be a most voracious guzzler of the fumes of tobacco; which, making him a nuisance, of course sinks him some degrees lower, in the feelings of every well-bred Englishman. Nay, he may talk of men and things

in general, with very little ceremony; and even think that there is not a missionary in the world, who is good for any thing, besides himself. But, has he love to his brethren? Does this really manifest itself, in his communications and carriage towards them? That is the question which we should ask, to determine his sincerity.

But we were chiefly speaking with regard to the Jews, as a nation. Here, also, we must not judge by the exterior. If you see twenty Jews together, perhaps they are all talking at once. And what harm? It is their way. Let not this make you despair, good brother, respecting the conversion of Israel. Come with us, to that Jewish public-house, at the corner. Let us not enter; it would be an intrusion. We will only pass by the open window. See, they are all drinking coffee. It is their strongest beverage. Oriental vivacity needs no more potent stimulant. You seldom, if ever, see a Jew intoxicated. "But what a noise, what an outcry!" Yes; they are talking together, indeed; fifty of them at least; and they all seem to be trying which can talk the loudest. "Are they wrangling, then? Is it a quarrel?" No. This is their usual way. The more talk at once, the more chance that something will be said worth hearing. And when any thing worth hearing is said, it is sure to be heard. Nothing that really merits attention falls to the ground, in the midst of all the hubbub. You, no doubt, like to lay down the law, sentence after sentence, with the whole drawingroom holding their breath, and listening: and this you call rational conversation. Expect not to find it among the Jews." But what hearty laughter!" Yes. These are true sons of Isaac. And God shall some day make them to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with them. It is not so with the children of the bondwoman. The Arab is grave, and affects dignity. The solemn Ishmaelite scorns to laugh. He can mock in bitterness, like his progenitor; but to laugh he knows not. Here, then, not only mark the national difference; but mark its origin, as already traced out for you in the Bible.— They can argue, too." Yes, indeed, can they; but with perfect good temper, even when they seem most in earnest. fact, no people are more free with one another. An interruption, with "I beg your pardon; you are wrong;" or even a flat contradiction, is no incivility among Jews. Yet, after all, few people have more of real good breeding than the Jews have, when they choose to put it on: few people, on being introduced into Gentile society, can more readily and courteously adapt themselves, to the manners of those around them. The truth is, that every descendant of Abraham is a gentleman born.

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